Comparative study between patients with infarction and angina about the fear of pain, anxiety pain symptoms, heart focused anxiety, psychopathology and hostility

Background: To examine the fear of pain, anxiety pain symptoms, heart focused anxiety, psychopathology and hostility between patients with infarction and angina. Method: Subjects were 104 patients with infarction or angina, who completed the Hostility and Direction of Hostility Questionnaire, the Symptom Checklist-90-R, Cardiac Anxiety Questionnaire, the Pain Anxiety Symptoms Scale-20 and the Fear of Pain Questionnaire – III. Results: For all patients higher levels of fear and anxiety of pain, heart-focused anxiety psychopathology, and a tendency to develop a hostile attitude were observed. For angina group higher levels of fearfull thinking and total PASS-20, avoidance CAQ, somatization and anxiety (SCL-90). In addition, all patients were found to be significantly correlated (P< .005) with sex, fearfull PASS-20, physiological responses PASS-20, total PASS-20, avoidance CAQ, somatization SCL-90, anxiety SCL-90 Conclusion: There is a variety of general factors that may promote the development of cardiophobia. These processes are likely nonspecific in the sense that they increase the chance of negative emotional responding and poor affect regulatory strategies. For persons exposed to cardiac-related illnesses or persons who model the potential dangers of cardiac-related sensations, there may be an enhanced specificity to that general vulnerability.